Nigeria has seen a 13 per cent growth in technology usage as revealed by the information and communications development index (IDI) 2025 compiled by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU).

The IDI was introduced in 2009 to measure the level of development of the ICT sector across countries. It aimed to assess the extent to which connectivity is universal and meaningful in countries, regions and the world.

It provided a standardised measure over time and across geographies, supporting evidence-based decision-making. It consisted of 10 indicators, distributed in two pillars: universal connectivity and meaningful connectivity.

The index showed that in 2023, Nigeria had a score of 44.2 per cent, which rose to 46.9 per cent in 2024 and 52.9 per cent in 2025, subsequently gaining 13 per cent. Some other countries in Africa also recorded growth. For instance, Algeria, six per cent; Cote d’Ivoire, six per cent; Congo Democratic, 67 per cent; Egypt, one per cent; Gabon, two per cent, Liberia, 18 per cent. Kenya recorded a slump of four per cent.

Checks by The Guardian showed that the real GDP contribution of Nigeria’s ICT sector reached 11.18 per cent in the second quarter of 2025, a steady increase from the previous year, solidifying its role as a key component of the non-oil economy.

This is even as the Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr Bosun Tijani, announced plans to raise the ICT sector’s contribution to GDP to 21 per cent within the next two to three years, highlighting the government’s focus on digital economic expansion.

The ICT sector has continued to power several high-growth sub-sectors, including the telecom, digital finance (Fintech), e-commerce, edTech/Healthtech, among others.

Indeed, the 2025 edition of the IDI covered 164 economies, compared with 170 economies in the 2024 edition and 169 in the 2023 edition. Changes in data availability resulted in the addition of one economy and the removal of seven economies that did not meet the minimum threshold for the number of official data points. ITU said this reduced coverage is a cause for concern, as it highlighted persistent and even widening gaps in ICT data.

The telecom body noted that the average score for the 164 economies included in the IDI 2025 is 78.2 per cent.

The lowest IDI score is 25 per cent and the highest is 99 per cent. It noted that 47 economies have an IDI score between 90 and 100. Another 51 economies have a score between 80 and 90. At the other end of the scale, 20 economies score below 50, and a further 15 have a score between 50 and 60.

The telecom body noted that with a median score of 85 and more than half of the economies past the 80-point mark, these results suggested that the world is relatively well advanced on the path toward UMC, though significant disparities remain, as reflected in the gap of almost 75 points between the best and worst performers.

Among the six ITU regions, Europe (average IDI 2025 score of 91) and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) (88) achieve the best group performance. They are also the most homogeneous, as reflected in their tall, narrow distribution curves. Asia-Pacific (80), the Arab States (78) and the Americas (77) achieve similar average scores. But these conceal extreme disparities within each region. For instance, the Arab States region includes the countries with the highest score (99) and the fourth-lowest (34).

Likewise, in the Asia-Pacific group, the gap between the best-performing country (98) and the worst (36) exceeds 61 points. And while Africa’s average score is by far the lowest (56), there is a 61-point difference between the region’s best (86) and worst (25) performers.

ITU said these wide internal disparities underscored that geography alone is a poor predictor of digital development performance.

Director of the Telecommunication Development Bureau, ITU, Dr Cosmas Luckyson Zavazava, said the current IDI is anchored in the concept of universal and meaningful connectivity (UMC), a term coined by ITU in 2021 that has since gained broad traction.

Zavazava said many governments and organisations are embracing this concept, based on the premise that realising the full potential of connectivity requires more than access – it also means addressing barriers such as affordability, digital skills, and connection quality.

According to him, on the path to UMC, the IDI serves as an important tool for tracking progress, saying the 2025 results showed continued global advances in connectivity, with nearly all economies improving their performance. He said it is encouraging that low-income countries tend to be progressing the fastest, although from a low base. Gaps with higher-income countries remain wide.

This edition also presents attention to the situation of Least Developed Countries (LDCs), Landlocked Developing Countries (LLDCs), and Small Island Developing States (SIDS). While these groups often face significant structural challenges, the IDI sheds light on their evolving digital landscapes and the markedly different trajectories within each group.

He said the IDI remained a work in progress, saying more and better data are needed to capture the full complexity of meaningful connectivity and expand country coverage.